Facilitating interoperability among communication systems via inter- and intra-agency communications using a shared network

ABSTRACT

Providing contact information via a directory service comprises a request being received from an originator to obtain at least a portion of contact information associated with a target. A first policy associated with the originator is identified, and a second policy that is associated with the target is identified. Based on at least one of the policies, it is determined whether a portion of the contact information associated with the target is authorized to be presented to the originator. If authorized, the portion of the contact information is presented to the originator. Upon receiving a request from the originator to establish communication with the target, it is determined whether a portion of contact information associated with the originator is authorized to presented to the target based on at least one of the policies. If authorized, the portion of the contact information associated with the originator is presented to the target.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to radio frequency (RF)communications and, more particularly, to facilitating interoperabilityamong communication systems via inter- and intra-agency communicationsusing a shared network.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The continued proliferation of RF communication systems presentsopportunities to improve communications among various groups,particularly public safety agencies. For example, with improvedcommunications, coordination of emergency response efforts by differentpublic safety agencies can be improved. In addition, time delays inemergency response services, which often occur due to poor communicationamong the public safety agencies, can be mitigated.

Notwithstanding, different agencies commonly use communication systemsthat are incompatible with one another. For example, a local policedepartment may communicate using a particular communication service thatis different than communication services being used by state and federalagencies. In this example, it would be desirable to deploy a publicsafety wide area network (WAN) to support communications among local,state and federal public safety agencies, while ensuring compatibilitywith existing communication infrastructure. Moreover, use of the publicsafety WAN should not be overly cumbersome to those that will be usingthe WAN. Thus, it would be desirable to facilitate interoperabilityamong communication systems that use a shared network.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

Various embodiments of the present invention will be described below inmore detail, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 depicts a multi-agency communications network with a shareddirectory service (DS) function in accordance with the presentinvention;

FIGS. 2A and B depict an example of the type of data stored in the DS inaccordance with the present invention;

FIG. 3 depicts a flowchart which outlines an example of a DS originatorattempting to retrieve information from the DS in accordance with thepresent invention; and

FIG. 4 depicts a flowchart which outlines an example of a DS originatorattempting to initiate communication with a target resource through theDS in accordance with the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

While the specification concludes with claims defining features of theinvention that are regarded as novel, it is believed that the inventionwill be better understood from a consideration of the description inconjunction with the drawings. As required, detailed embodiments of thepresent invention are disclosed herein; however, it is to be understoodthat the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention,which can be embodied in various forms. Therefore, specific structuraland functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted aslimiting, but merely as a basis for the claims and as a representativebasis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ thepresent invention in virtually any appropriately detailed structure.Further, the terms and phrases used herein are not intended to belimiting but rather to provide an understandable description of theinvention.

Arrangements described herein relate to the management of data andoperation of a directory service (DS). More particularly, thesearrangements describe methods and systems which may be used to updatedata in a DS which support and facilitate intra-agency communication aswell as inter-agency communication. It is important to note, as usedherein, the term agency is defined as a grouping of one-to-manyresources sharing a private communication network and applications (e.g.public safety police, public safety fire, a company, a family, anorganization, an enterprise, or the like). The following examples willbe focused on public safety applications, however, it will be obvious toone skilled in the art that the spirit and scope of the presentinvention is not limited to such, and can be used by othertelecommunication systems, such as pubic and private wired and wirelesssystems (e.g. Long Term Evolution (LTE), Worldwide Interoperability forMicrowave Access (WiMAX), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), HighRate Packet Data (HRPD), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System(UMTS), Project 25, Land Mobile Radio (LMR), etc.), and enterprises.

DS data for an agency can represent various agency resources and definevarious policies applicable to the agency resources when participatingin intra-agency and/or inter-agency communications. A DS originator canretrieve DS data from the DS for a target resource, subject to at leastone policy set forth by either the DS originator's agency or by thetarget resource's agency. DS originator and target resource are definedbelow with respect to FIG. 1. The actual amount of information that isallowed to be viewed by the DS originator is a function of the policyassociated with the DS originator, the policy associated with the targetresource, both policies associated with the DS originator and the targetresource, or a combination thereof. When communications are initiatedvia the DS, the DS can enforce the applicable policy/policies to providea level of privacy for the agency resources, as well as mitigate therisk of unauthorized contact with the agency resources. For example, thepolicy data can indicate access policies, viewing policies, or any otherpolicies that are applicable to communications that are establishedusing the DS.

In some instances, it may be desirable for some agencies to guardcertain types of contact information for an agency resource, forinstance agency resource identifiers (e.g. a responder's real name) andcontact address (e.g. a telephone number). As used herein, contactinformation refers to the total set of data an agency administrator mayprovision for an agency resource in the DS. Contact informationincludes, but is not limited to, at least one of the following: aresource identifier, a group membership, a home identifier, aspecialized capability, a contact address associated with a type ofapplication, a type of device associated with the contact address, atype of application associated with the contact address, a context type,dynamic contextual information, an overall policy, a specific policywhen the agency resource is a DS originator, a specific policy when theagency resource is a target resource, or the like. Indeed, an agency mayonly want authorized personnel to have access to this contactinformation. The interconnection of multiple agencies onto a sharednetwork (e.g. Internet protocol (IP) network), however, tends toincrease the probability that contact information, or a portion of thecontact information, for an agency resource may be inadvertently sharedto other agencies or other agency resources within the same agency usingthe same network. Thus, the arrangements described herein address thisconcern. For example, rather than presenting an actual resourceidentifier to a DS originator and/or a target resource being contacted,a proxy resource identifier can be presented (e.g. “Chief of Police”instead of “Officer John Smith”).

Further, in lieu of presenting an actual contact address for a targetresource to the DS originator, a proxy contact address can be presented.Similarly, when the DS originator attempts to establish communicationwith the target resource, a proxy contact address for the DS originatorcan be presented to the target resource. The proxy contact address canbe dynamically generated for use only by the DS originator and/or thetarget resource, thereby preventing others from using the proxy contactaddress to establish contact with the target resource/DS originator.Once the DS originator has obtained a contact address (i.e. an actualcontact address or a proxy contact address) from the DS, communicationcan be initiated with the target resource through the DS itself. In someembodiments, when the DS is functioning as a proxy, the DS can insertitself into communications (e.g. calls, sessions, etc.) between the DSoriginator and target resource. This insertion allows the DS to replacea proxy contact address with the target resource's actual contactaddress. Additionally, this insertion allows the DS to protect the DSoriginator's contact information from the target resource. Accordingly,a level of privacy can be maintained for agency resources that use theDS to initiate and/or receive communications. Let us turn to the figuresto discuss the invention in greater detail.

FIG. 1 depicts a communication system 100 that is useful forunderstanding the present invention. The communication system 100 caninclude a DS 102, which may be implemented using a database instantiatedon a server or implemented in any other suitable manner. The DS 102 canfacilitate WAN communications among various communication systems, suchas those used by various agencies.

In this regard, the communication system 100 can include one or morecommunication networks 104 via which resources from the various agenciesmay establish contact and communicate with one another. Thecommunication network(s) 104 can include one or more WANs (e.g. theInternet, the World Wide Web, a wide area telecommunication system,dedicated fiber links, metro-Ethernet, T1, E1, etc.), one or more localarea networks (LANs), IP based and/or circuit based telephone networks,or any other suitable wired or wireless communication network. Thecommunications among agency resources can include, but are not limitedto, full-duplex communications (circuit telephony calls, voice overinternet protocol (VoIP) telephony calls, or the like), half-duplexcommunications (e.g. land mobile radio, push-to-talk), simplexcommunications (e.g. broadcast services), data communications (e.g. textmessaging, instant messages (IMs), e-mails, application sharingsessions, data requests, data uploads, machine-to-machine), videocommunications (e.g. video conference requests/video conferences,network conference requests/video conferences, video surveillance), andthe like.

The DS 102 can include DS data 106, 108 for a plurality of agenciesauthorized to communicate using the DS 102. For example, the DS 102 caninclude DS data 106 for a first agency 110 and DS data 108 for a secondagency 112. The DS data 106, 108 can include other data 114, 116 relatedto resources within the respective agencies 110, 112, contactinformation for the resources and policy information for such resources.The data 114, 116 also can indicate the agencies with which theresources are associated, for instance a home domain. In illustration,the data 114, 116 can indicate home identifiers for agencies with whichthe resources are associated. A home identifier can identify, forexample, a name of an agency, a domain name associated with an agency,the P25 Inter-Subsystem Interface (ISSI) Wide Area Communication Network(WACN) Identifier, a P25 ISSI System Identifier associated with theagency, a P25 ISSI radio frequency subsystem (RFSS) identifier, or anagency in any other suitable manner.

In one example, one or more resource identifiers can be associated witheach agency resource included in the data 114, 116. As used herein, aresource identifier is a human-readable name, role, or descriptionassociated with an agency resource. Examples of resource identifiersinclude, but are not limited to, proper names (e.g. “Officer JohnSmith”), device names (e.g. “Toll-way Camera”), responder roles (e.g.“Chief of Police” or “Incident Commander”), and communication groupnames (e.g. “Beat 4 Responders”).

In another example, the listing of resources can be limited to resourceidentifiers for those resources that are authorized to communicate viathe DS 102. The listing of resources also may include identifiers fordevices with which data may be exchanged. These resource identifiers canbe included in addition to, or in lieu of, resource identifiers thatidentify individual agency resources.

Hereinafter, an agency resource that is requesting from the DS 102contact information associated with another resource or initiating acall/session to another resource through the DS will be referred to as a“DS originator” (e.g. DS originator 118). The other resource with whichthe requested contact information is associated will be referred to as a“target resource” (e.g. target resource 120). In this context, a targetresource 120 can be a resource of an agency 112 or the agency 112itself. Furthermore, a DS originator 118 and the target resource can beassociated with a common agency or a different agency.

When a DS originator 118 receives contact information for a targetresource 120, the DS originator 118 can utilize the DS 102 to attempt toestablish communication with the target resource 120. If the DSoriginator 118 does not know specific contact address information forthe appropriate agency resource that is to be contacted, the DSoriginator 118 can access from the DS 102 a list of one or more targetresources that may be appropriate. For example, in a mutual aid scenariowhich requires inter-agency communication, the DS originator 118 may notknow a specific resource identifier of the target resource 120 thatshould be contacted. Nonetheless, if the DS originator 118 knows thatthe agency 112 likely includes a suitable resource, the DS originator118 can access the DS 102 to retrieve from the data 116 a listing ofresource identifiers, and suitable means for contacting thecorresponding agency resources. The DS originator 118 can then select aresource identifier from the list to be the target resource 120, andattempt to establish communication with that agency resource.

Moreover, if the DS originator 118 is not sure of which agency to whichto establish communication is most suitable, the DS 102 can choose topresent a listing of resource identifiers from multiple agencies. Forinstance, the DS 102 can present to the DS originator 118 a listing ofavailable agencies, and the DS originator 118 can select potentiallysuitable agencies from such listing. The DS may also display a listingof agencies with jurisdiction (or nearby jurisdiction) based on the DSoriginator's location, the location of a nearby incident, or thelocation designated by a Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) operator.

For agency resources that are authorized to receive communications viathe DS 102, static contact information can be provided. In onearrangement, the static contact information can include actual contactaddresses for the resources. Examples of such contact addresses include,but are not limited to, telephone numbers, radio identifiers, instantmessaging identifiers, e-mail addresses, internet protocol (IP)addresses, uniform resource identifiers (URIs), user identifiers,Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) Inter-RF SubsystemInterface (ISSI) unit identifiers (UIDs), TIA ISSI group identifiers(GIDs), TIA ISSI Wide Area Communication Network (WACN) identifiers, TIAISSI system identifier, TIA ISSI RFSS identifiers, session initiationprotocol (SIP) uniform resource identifiers (URIs), and/or any otheraddresses that may be used to contact the resource.

The static contact information also can include data that indicates thetypes of devices, applications and/or communication protocols to whichthe static contact information pertain. For example, a type ofcommunication device and a communication protocol applicable tocommunicating with the device can be associated with a particulartelephone number, radio identifier, instant messaging identifier, e-mailaddress, IP address, push-to-talk address, etc.

Further, presence information may be provided to indicate when variousforms of communication are applicable for contacting the individualresources, though this need not be the case since such information canbe dynamically retrieved in real-time, as will be described.

In addition, the data 114, 116 can include group membership affiliationsfor one or more resources. For example, a particular resource may beassociated with a particular group of responders (e.g. ‘beat 4responders’), a particular agency resource classification (e.g. ranking,role, or position), and the like. In such an arrangement, the DSoriginating group policies and/or target resource group policies thatare assigned to the resources can be based on the resource's groupmembership affiliations. The data 114, 116 also may include any otherdata that may be pertinent to a particular resource or group ofresources, for instance, a specialized knowledge, capability,certification, and the like.

In one aspect of the inventive arrangements, resource identifiers alsocan be provided for specific positions and/or roles within an agency.For example, a resource identifier may be provided for “BattalionCommander,” “Incident 436 Commander,” “Lead Investigator,” “Governor,”and the like. The positions and/or roles for a resource may remainstatic or can be dynamically associated with the resources based onresource context of the DS originator (hereinafter “DS originatorcontext”) 122 and/or resource context of the target resource(hereinafter “target resource context”) 124, as will be described hereinin greater detail. As used herein, the term “DS originator context”means information that indicates a current state of static and/ordynamic conditions associated with DS originator 118. As used herein,the term “target resource context” means information that indicates acurrent state of static and/or dynamic conditions associated with atarget resource 120. It should be noted that, depending on the systemdesign, requirements and/or embodiment, the DS originator context andtarget resource context can be updated separately or simultaneously inthe DS 102. Further, the DS originator context and the target resourcecontext can be updated in real-time or non-real time.

In another aspect of the inventive arrangements, the resourceidentifiers further may include identifiers of specific devices withwhich data may be exchanged. For example, resource identifiers can beprovided for traffic cameras (e.g. “Interstate 90 Traffic Camera”),specific communication devices (e.g. radios that are shared amongmultiple personnel shifts), etc. Accordingly, these devices can beconsidered agency resources.

The data 114, 116 further can include policy data for each agencyresource. The policy data can, for example, identify originator policiesapplicable to when a resource is a DS originator 118, and targetpolicies applicable to when the resource is a target resource 120. Inthis regard, the term “originator policy,” as used herein, means apolicy that is associated with a DS originator 118. Similarly, the term“target policy,” as used herein, means a policy that is associated witha target resource.

The originator policies also can define access policies, viewingpolicies, and/or any other policies that may be applicable when anagency resource is a DS originator 118. Similarly, the target policiescan define access policies, viewing policies, and/or any other policiesthat may be applicable when an agency resource is a target resource 120.

For example, the originator policies can define originator viewingpolicies which include one or more identifiers that indicate thosetarget resources 120 for which the DS originator 118 may view at least aportion of the contact information, as well as those target resources120 for which the DS originator 118 may not view agency resourceinformation. Likewise, the target policies can specify target viewingpolicies which include one or more identifiers that indicate thoseagencies 110 or DS originators 118 that are permitted to view at least aportion of the contact information associated with the target resource120, as well as those agencies 110 and/or DS originators 118 that arenot permitted to view at least a portion of the contact informationassociated with the target resource 120.

When a DS originator 118 requests from the DS 102 information for one ormore target resources 120, the DS 102 can access the originator viewingpolicies associated with the DS originator 118 and the target viewingpolicies associated with the target resource(s) 120, and process thesepolicies to determine whether to present contact information for thetarget resource(s) 120 to the DS originator 118. If the originatorviewing policies or the target viewing policies indicate that the DSoriginator 118 is not authorized to view contact information for thetarget resource(s) 120, the DS 102 will not present the contactinformation to the DS originator 118. If, however, neither theoriginator viewing policies nor the target viewing policies indicatethat the contact information may not be presented to the DS originator118, then the DS 102 can present the contact information to the DSoriginator 118.

Rather than only indicating whether any of the contact information maybe presented to the DS originator 118, the originator viewing policiesand target viewing policies also can specify the type(s) of information,if any, that is authorized to be presented to a DS originator 118 and/orto the agency resource when the agency resource is a target resource 120is being contacted by a DS originator 118. In illustration, the viewingpolicies can indicate contact information, such as resource identifiers(e.g. names) and contact addresses (e.g. telephone numbers, radioidentifiers, IM identifiers, e-mail addresses, IP addresses,push-to-talk identifiers, SIP URIs, etc.) that may be presented and/orthat may not be presented to a DS originator 118 and/or target resource120.

When an originator viewing policy and/or target viewing policy indicatesthat a certain resource identifier for a target resource 120 may not bepresented to a DS originator 118, the viewing policy can provide anidentifier that indicates that a proxy name is to be presented to the DSoriginator 118 in lieu of the resource identifier. In like manner, whenan originator viewing policy and/or target viewing policy indicates thata certain resource identifier of a DS originator 118 may not bepresented to a target resource 120, the viewing policy can provide anidentifier that indicates that a proxy name is to be presented to thetarget resource 120 in lieu of the resource identifier. Thus, as usedherein, a “proxy name” is an identifier that identifies a DS originator118 or target resource 120 without identifying the DSoriginator's/target resource's real, used, given, or legal name. Forinstance, a proxy name can indicate a DS originator's or targetresource's position or role within an agency. Examples of proxy namescan include, but are not limited to, “Police Chief,” “BattalionCommander,” “Incident 123 Commander,” “Detective,” “Beat Responder,”“Governor,” and so on.

Further, when a viewing policy indicates that a certain contact addressfor a target resource 120 may not be presented to a DS originator 118,the viewing policy can provide an identifier that indicates that a proxycontact address is to be presented to the DS originator 118. When aviewing policy indicates that a certain contact address for a DSoriginator 118 may not be presented to a target resource 120, theviewing policy can provide an identifier that indicates that a proxycontact address is to be presented to the target resource 120 in lieu ofthe contact address. Thus, as used herein, a “proxy contact address” isan identifier that corresponds to a contact address and which may bepresented to a DS originator 118 and/or a target resource 120 in lieu ofthe contact address. Moreover, a proxy contact address may be selectedby a DS originator 118 to initiate contact with a target resource 120 atthe contact address that is associated with the proxy contact address.As noted, the contact address can be associated with a particular devicevia which the target resource 120 may be contacted.

The proxy names and/or proxy contact addresses can be generated by aproxy server 130, which may be a component of the DS 102 or otherwisecommunicatively linked to the DS 102. When a DS originator 118 initiatescontact with a target resource 120, the DS 102 can process the data 114to identify the applicable originator viewing policy. The DS 102 canalso indicate to the proxy server 130 whether a proxy name and/or proxycontact address for the DS originator 118 is to be presented to thetarget resource 120. Similarly the DS 102 can also indicate to the proxyserver 130 whether a proxy name and/or proxy contact address for thetarget resource 120 is to be presented to the DS originator 118.Likewise, when a target resource 120 is being contacted by a DSoriginator 118, the DS 102 can process the data 116 to identify theapplicable target viewing policy. As above, the DS 102 can also indicateto the proxy server 130 whether a proxy name and/or proxy contactaddress for the target resource 120 is to be presented to the DSoriginator 118, and whether a proxy name and/or proxy contact addressfor the DS originator 118 is to be presented to the target resource 120.

It should be noted that in some embodiments, a proxy name and/or proxycontact address can have a 1:1 ratio between target resource:DSoriginator or between DS originator:target resource. For example, aproxy name and/or proxy contact address is associated with exactly onetarget resource in the DS 102, and assigned by the DS 102 to be used byone DS originator at any given time. In other embodiments, a proxy nameand/or proxy contact address can have a 1:x ratio between targetresource:DS originator or between DS originator:target resource, where xis an integer greater than 1. For example, a proxy name and/or proxycontact address is associated with exactly one target resource at anygiven time in the DS 102, and can be assigned by the DS to be used byone or more DS originators at any given time. In yet other embodiments,a proxy name and/or proxy contact address can have a x:1 ratio betweentarget resource:DS originator or between DS originators:target resource,where x is an integer greater than 1. For example, a proxy name and/orproxy contact address can be associated with one or more targetresources at any given time in the DS 102, but assigned by the DS 102 tobe used by only one DS originator at any given time. In still yet otherembodiments, a proxy name and/or proxy contact address can have a x:yratio between the target resources:DS originators or between DSoriginators:target resources, where x and y are integers greater than 1.For example, a proxy name and/or proxy contact address can be associatedwith one or more target resources at any given in the DS 102, andassigned by the DS 102 to be used by one or more DS originators at anygiven time. Each application supported by a device may require adifferent proxy contact address depending on at least one policyassociated with the DS originator 118 and/or target resource 120. Forexample, if the device supports more than one application (e.g.telephony and PTT), a different proxy name and/or proxy contact addressmay be associated with each application on the device.

It should also be noted that in some embodiment, a proxy name and/orproxy contact address can be associated in the DS 102 and/or assigned bythe DS 102 with a timer that is sufficiently long (e.g. 1 week) toensure sufficient time for the communication between DS originator 118and target resource 120 before the proxy name and/or proxy contactaddress can be re-associated in the DS 102 and/or re-assigned by the DS102 at a future point. In other embodiments, the proxy name and/or proxycontact address would never be re-associated in the DS and/orre-assigned by the DS 102, thus making each association and/orassignment unique. In still other embodiments, the proxy name and/orproxy contact address can be re-associated in the DS 102 and/orre-assigned by the DS 102 after a period of inactivity or the DSoriginator 118 and/or target resource 120 de-registers from the network.

In one arrangement, the proxy contact addresses generated by the proxyserver 130 can be temporary identifiers that are dynamically generatedspecifically for the DS originator 118 and/or target resource 120. Inillustration, proxy contact addresses for a particular target resource120 may only be used by a specific DS originator 118 to contact thetarget resource 120. Similarly, proxy contact addresses for a particularDS originator 118 may only be used by a specific target resource 120 torespond to that DS originator 118. Accordingly, if a DS originator 118or target resource 120 shares a proxy contact address with anotherentity, that entity will not be able to use the proxy contact addressesto contact the target resource 120 or DS originator 118 with which theproxy contact address is associated. In other words, the proxy contactaddress can only be used by the DS originator/target resource that isassigned to use the proxy contact address by the DS102. Thus,unauthorized contact of target resources 120 and/or DS originators 118can be mitigated.

In addition to the viewing policies, access policies also can beimplemented to prevent unauthorized contact of target resources 120. Forinstance, the originator policies can define originator access policieswhich include one or more identifiers that indicate target resources 120that a DS originator 118 is authorized to contact and/or one or moreidentifiers that indicate target resources 120 that a DS originator 118is not authorized to contact. In a similar manner, the target policiescan define target access policies which include one or more identifiersthat indicate DS originators 118 that are allowed to initiate contactwith target resources 120 and/or DS originators 118 that are not allowedto initiate contact with target resources 120.

When a DS originator 118 attempts to establish communication with atarget resource 120, the DS 102 can retrieve and process at least one ofthe originator access policies associated with the DS originator 118and/or target access policies associated with the target resource 120 todetermine whether to allow the DS originator 118 to establish contactwith the target resource 120. If the originator access policies and/orthe target access policies do not prevent the DS originator 118 fromestablishing communication with the target resource 120, then the DS 102can allow the DS originator 118 to proceed with establishingcommunication with the target resource 120. For example, the DSoriginator 118 can retrieve the contact address (e.g. telephone number)for the target resource 120 from DS 102. The DS originator 118 canchoose to establish communication (e.g. telephony call) with the targetresource 120. A request from the DS originator 118 to establishcommunication with the target resource 120 is initially routed to the DS102, which applies the relevant policy/policies (e.g. access policy) todetermine whether the DS originator 118 is allowed to proceed toestablish communication with the target resource 120.

When an agency resource is a DS originator 118, the originator policiesapplicable to that resource may not completely correlate to the targetpolicies applicable to the target resource 120 that is being contacted.In this case, the most restrictive policies selected from the applicableoriginator policies and the target policies can be applied by the DS102. For example, if the originator viewing policies associated with aDS originator 118 are more restrictive than the target viewing policiesassociated with a target resource 120, the originator viewing policiesassociated with the DS originator 118 can be applied to determinewhether the proxy server 130 should generate a proxy name and/or proxycontact address. If, however, the target viewing policies associatedwith the target resource 120 are more restrictive than the originatorviewing policies associated with the DS originator 118, the targetviewing policies of the target resource 120 can be applied to determinewhether the proxy server 130 should generate a proxy name and/or proxycontact address.

Rather than specifically defining policy data for each individualresource, group policies may be defined and assigned to groups ofresources. For example, originator group policies can be defined forvarious groups of potential DS originators, and each of these DSoriginator group policies can be assigned to one or more resources.Likewise, target group policies can be defined for various groups ofpotential target resources, and each of these target group policies canbe assigned to one or more resources. Further, originator group policiesand/or target resource group policies that are assigned to the resourcescan be assigned automatically based on the positions and/or roles of theresources. When positions and/or roles dynamically change, the calloriginating group policies and/or target resource group policies alsocan be dynamically changed accordingly.

The data 114, 116 can be updated (e.g. added, deleted and/or changed) tothe DS data 106, 108 by agencies or other parties authorized to populatethe data. For example, the data 114 can be updated in response toreceiving corresponding data from an agency administrator 126 within thefirst agency 110 that is authorized to perform data updates. Similarly,data 116 can be updated to the DS data 108 in response to receivingcorresponding data from an agency administrator 128 within the secondagency 112 that is authorized to perform data updates. The data 114 and116 can be updated to the DS 102, for instance using a suitableapplication.

The respective agency administrators 126, 128 can access the DS 102 viathe communication network(s) 104 or via any other suitable communicationmediums. In one arrangement, the agency administrators 126, 128 can bepeople who communicate with the DS 102 via a suitable communicationdevice, such as a network terminal, an access terminal, or a computer.The agency administrators 126, 128 can communicate with the DS 102 via aweb-based application hosted on a server that interfaces with the DS102, an application hosted locally that interfaces with the DS 102, orin any other suitable manner. In another arrangement, the agencyadministrators 126, 128 can be implemented as suitable applicationsinstantiated on a processing device, such as a computer or server, whichinterfaces with the DS 102.

The DS data 106 further can include the DS originator context 122 forone or more DS originators 118 within the first agency 110, as well astarget resource context 124 for one or more target resources 120 withinthe second agency 112. Of course, context data for one or more targetresources in the first agency 110 and context data for one or more DSoriginators in the second agency 112 also can be provided. Such contextdata is not presented in the present example, however, for the purposeof clarity.

The DS originator context 122 can include data relevant to the presentcircumstances associated with the DS originator 118, and the targetresource context 124 can include data relevant to the presentcircumstances of the target resource 120. In this regard, the contexts122, 124 can include contextual information that is statically assignedand/or contextual information that is dynamically updated. Examples ofstatic contextual information include, but are not limited to, an agencyresource's role in an agency, the agency resource's special capabilities(e.g. hazardous material certification, scuba diving, chemicalspecialist, hostage negotiator, medical certifications, etc.), and theagency resource's agency name and address. Examples of dynamiccontextual information include, but are not limited to, the agencyresource's presence state (e.g. on-line, off-line, busy, etc.), theagency resource's current location, the weather conditions at the agencyresource's current location, traffic and/or travel conditions at theagency resource's current location, and one or more applicationscurrently available for use by the agency resource (e.g. telephony,push-to-talk, etc.).

When the DS originator context 122 contains dynamically generatedinformation and/or when the target resource context 124 containsdynamically generated information, the DS originator context 122 and/orthe target resource context 124 can be updated when the DS originator118 initiates contact with the target resource 120, or the respectivecontexts 122, 124 can be maintained by the DS 102 and periodicallyupdated, for example once a minute, every ten minutes, every half-hour,etc.

Further, the DS 102 can associate the target resource context 124 and DSoriginator context 122 when the DS originator 118 initiates contact withthe target resource 120. Thus, unless target and/or originator policiesspecify otherwise, the target resource context 124 can be shared withthe DS originator 118, and the DS originator context 122 can be sharedwith the target resource 120.

The DS originator context 122 can include data that indicates thepresent originator policies applicable to the DS originator 118, and thetarget resource context 124 can include data that indicates the targetpolicies applicable to the target resource 120. Accordingly, theapplicable originator policies and target policies can be staticpolicies or policies that are dynamically selected in real-time based onthe present circumstances related to the DS originator 118 and/or targetresource 120. For example, if a particular target resource 120 ispresently a member of a response team responding to a particularincident, then the target resource context 124 can indicate the targetpolicies that are applicable in this particular circumstance. Still, theoriginator policies and target policies can be dynamically selectedbased on any other circumstances and the invention is not limited inthis regard.

In addition, the DS originator context 122 can include data thatindicates the present location of the DS originator 118, and the targetresource context 124 can include data that indicates the presentlocation of the target resource 120. The present locations can bedetermined using a global positioning system (GPS), a local positioningsystem, automatic vehicle location, identifying static locationsassociated with DS originator 118/target resource 120 (e.g. officelocations), radio frequency identification (RFID) tags, or the presentlocations can be determined in any other suitable manner.

The DS originator context 122 and target resource context 124 also caninclude presence information related to the respective DS originator 118or target resource 120. The presence information can indicate whetherthe DS originator 118/target resource 120 is presently accessible via aparticular communication means (e.g. via e-mail, IM, telephony,push-to-talk, etc.), whether the DS originator 118/target resource 120is presently on duty, whether the DS originator 118/target resource 120is presently in the office or in the field, etc.

The DS originator context 122 and target resource context 124 furthermay include real-time traffic information and/or real-time weatherinformation associated with the respective DS originator 118 or targetresource 120. For example, if the DS originator 118 is currently at anincident scene, the DS originator context 122 can include presenttraffic information and/or weather information at the incident scene.Similarly, if the target resource 120 is at another incident scene, thetarget resource context 124 can include present traffic informationand/or weather information at the other incident scene.

The real-time traffic information and real-time weather information canbe updated by the DS 102 by accessing data from a real-time trafficservice 132 and a real-time weather service 134, respectively. Forexample, the DS can communicate with the real-time traffic service 132and the real-time weather service 134 via a wide area network, such asthe Internet.

It should be noted that the inventive arrangements described herein arenot limited to the examples of context data that have been described.Indeed, any of a myriad of other context data can be included in the DSoriginator context 122 and the target resource context 124, and theinvention is not limited in this regard. For example, biometric data ofDS originators 118 and/or target resources 120 can be included in the DSoriginator context 122 and the target resource context 124, as well asany other context that may be of use to determine the presentcircumstances associated with a DS originator 118 and/or target resource120.

FIGS. 2A and B depict an example of a data table 200 that is useful forunderstanding the present invention. The data table 200 can be stored ina database or in any other suitable information format which allows thedata table 200 to be updated with data. As used herein, the term“update,” means to add data, delete data and/or to change data. The datatable 200 manages the contact information for the agency resources usinga DS.

The data table 200 can include a number of fields for DS data that canbe associated with agency resources. For example, the data table 200 caninclude, but is not limited to, a field 202 for a resource identifierfor the agency resource, a field 204 that indicates groups with whichthe agency resource is associated (e.g. as a member of the group), afield 206 that indicates a home identifier for the agency resource, afield 208 that indicates one or more specialized capabilities of theagency resource, a field 210 that indicates a device associated with theagency resource, a field 212 that indicates a type of applicationassociated with the device, a field 214 for a contact address at whichthe agency resource may be contacted via the application, a field 216that indicates one or more types of resource context, as describedbelow, that may be associated with the agency resource (e.g. how toobtain a current location of the agency resource), a field 218 thatindicates a policy applicable to the agency resource when the agencyresource is a DS originator (e.g. a viewing policy), a field 220 thatindicates a policy applicable to the agency resource when the agencyresource is a target resource (e.g. a viewing policy, etc.), and so on.It should be noted that, depending on the agency or system requirements,the policies indicated in fields 218 and 220 may be combined into asingle policy, or separated into additional policies. In accordance withthe present invention, a policy can, for example, indicate to the DS 102whether the DS originator and/or the target resource is authorized toview or be presented with at least a portion of the contact informationassociated with the DS originator and/or target resource. Thus, whendetermining whether at least a portion of the contact informationassociated with an agency resource can be viewed, the DS 102 can rely onat least one of the policies associated with the DS originator or thetarget resource. In other words, the DS 102 can rely on the policyassociated with the DS originator, the policy associated with the targetresource, the policies associated with both the DS originator and targetresource, or a combination thereof. Further, depending on the agency orsystem requirements, the DS 102 can always rely on one policy over theother policy based on other contact information in the records for theDS originator and target resource (e.g. the policy associated with thePolice Chief is always relied upon instead of the policy associated withthe Beat Responder, regardless if the Police Chief is the DS originatoror the target resource).

In addition, a policy can indicate to the DS 102 how the contactinformation is presented to an agency resource. For example, at leastone of the policies associated with the DS originator or the targetresource can indicate whether a proxy name and/or a proxy contactaddress is presented to the DS originator and/or target resource in lieuof the actual resource identifier and/or actual contact address of theagency resource. Some examples of providing a proxy name and proxycontact address is when a DS originator needs to contact an investigatorfor a particular incident scene. The DS originator may not know thatDetective Johnson is acting as lead investigator for the particularincident scene, so a policy associated with Detective Johnson canindicate to the DS 102 to provide a proxy name for Detective Johnson as“Lead Investigator”. Similarly, being the “Lead Investigator” for thisparticular incident scene, Detective Johnson may not want her directtelephone number distributed to individuals outside her home agency. Assuch, a policy associated with Detective Johnson can indicate to the DS102 to provide a proxy contact address for her device when the DSoriginator 118 that is trying to establish communication with her isoutside of her home agency.

The data table 200 further includes examples of records that may begenerated for various agency resources. For instance, a record 222 isdepicted for an agency resource “Beat 4 Responders,” which in thisexample is a group associated with an agency. The record 222 alsoincludes various fields 202-220 that are applicable to that agencyresource. In the present example, since the agency resource identifiedin the record 222 is a group, a group membership identifier in field 204need not be provided, although this need not be the case. Nonetheless,the record 222 can include an identifier for a particular type of devicein field 210 via which members of the group may be contacted, as well asother information and policies associated with the agency resource.

As noted, one or more types of resource context that may be associatedwith the agency resource in field 216. For instance, the resourcecontext identifier in field 216 can indicate how to obtain a currentlocation of the target resource (e.g. using automated vehicle location(AVL)), and other contextual information that may be available (e.g.weather conditions, traffic conditions, present location of the agencyresource, etc.).

A record can also depict an individual, for example record 224 isdepicted for “Officer John Smith.” The group membership identifier infield 204 for record 224 can indicate a group with which Officer JohnSmith is a member, such as “Beat 4 Responders.” Further, the record 224also can include other contact information and other policies associatedwith Officer John Smith, such as those previously described.

Record 226 corresponds to another agency resource. However, in contrastto records 222, 224, the agency resource in record 226 is identified bya position or role of the agency resource within the agency rather thanby a particular employee identifier. Further, record 226 and record 228correspond to the same resource identifier (i.e. “Chief of Police”),however, record 226 corresponds to a first application (i.e. presence)for the desktop device associated with the resource identifier andrecord 228 corresponds to a second application (i.e. VoIP) for thedesktop device.

Record 230 depicts an example of an agency resource that is a device, aswell as contact information and policies associated with the device.Record 232 depicts another example of an agency resource that isidentified by a role or position within the agency, as well as aparticular device, contact information and policies associated with thatagency resource. Notwithstanding these examples, any of a myriad ofother records can be generated for agency resources in accordance withthe inventive arrangements described herein.

In one arrangement, the policies when the agency resource is a DSoriginator or a target resource can be automatically updated in field218 and 220 for a particular record based upon at least one other pieceof contact information in the record. In another arrangement, thepolicies when the agency resource is a DS originator or a targetresource can be selected at the time communication is initiated by theagency resource or to the agency resource. For example, referring torecord 226, if the context associated with an agency resource (e.g. DSoriginator context or target resource context) indicates that the agencyresource is presently a member of a particular group, the policy usedwhen the agency resource is a DS originator 118 or a target resource 120can be selected based on the group membership. Nonetheless, the policywhen the agency resource is a DS originator 118 or a target resource 120can be dynamically or manually selected in any other suitable manner andthe invention is not limited in this regard.

Let us now turn the discussion to the operation of the DS 102. FIGS. 3and 4 are flowcharts that present methods 300 and 400 for providingcontact information via the DS 102, which are useful for understandingthe present invention. Referring first to FIG. 3, at step 302, the DS102 receives a request from a DS originator 118 to obtain at least aportion of contact information associated with a target resource 120.Upon receipt, the DS 102 identifies a first policy that is associatedwith the DS originator 118, at step 304, and identifies a second policythat is associated with the target resource 120, at step 306. Based onat least one of the policies, the DS 102 determines whether at least theportion of the contact information associated with the target resource120 is authorized to be presented to the DS originator, at step 308. Itis important to note that this determination may be based on the policyassociated with the DS originator, the policy associated with the targetresource, the policies associated with both the DS originator and thetarget resource, or a combination thereof. If authorized, the DS 102presents at least the portion of the contact information associated withthe target resource to the DS originator, at step 310; otherwise the DS102 does not present the DS originator 118 with the request contactinformation associated with the target resource 120 (e.g. at least oneof the policies associated with the DS originator or the target resourcemay indicate that “Officer Smith” is not allowed to contact “Chief ofPolice”).

As noted above, examples of contact information associated with thetarget resource that can be presented to the DS originator include, butis not limited to at least one of the following: at least one resourceidentifier, at least one group membership, at least one home identifier,at least one specialized capability, at least one contact addressassociated with a type of application, a type of device associated witha contact address, a type of application associated with a contactaddress, a context type, a policy, or the like. Notwithstanding theseexamples, any other suitable contact information associated with thetarget resource can be updated in the DS 102 and presented to the DSoriginator and the invention is not limited in this regard.

When a portion of the contact information being presented to the DSoriginator 118 is a resource identifier for the target resource, the DS102 can present a proxy resource identifier associated with the targetresource to the DS originator based on at least one of the policiesassociated with the DS originator and/or target resource in lieu of theactual resource identifier. Likewise, when a portion of the contactinformation being presented to the DS originator 118 is a contactaddress for the target resource, the DS 102 can present a proxy contactaddress associated with the target resource to the DS originator basedon at least one of the policies associated with the DS originator and/ortarget resource in lieu of the actual contact address. It should benoted that even though these two examples refer to the resourceidentifier and the contact address, any contact information stored inthe DS 102 can be presented to the DS originator via a proxy serverbased on at least one of the policies associated with the DS originatorand/or target resource.

Let us now refer to FIG. 4. The steps in FIG. 4 are similar to thosesteps described in FIG. 3, however, FIG. 4 focuses on the DS 102determining whether to present at least a portion of the contactinformation associated with the DS originator 118 to the target resource120 upon establishing communication between the DS originator 118 andthe target resource 120. At step 402, the DS 102 receives a request froma DS originator 118 to establish communication with a target resource120. Upon receipt, the DS 102 identifies a first policy that isassociated with the DS originator 118, at step 404, and identifies asecond policy that is associated with the target resource 120, at step406. Based on at least one of the policies, the DS 102 determineswhether at least the portion of the contact information associated withthe DS originator 118 is authorized to be presented to the targetresource 120, at step 408. Again, it is important to note that thisdetermination may be based on the policy associated with the DSoriginator 118, the policy associated with the target resource 120, thepolicies associated with both the DS originator 118 and the targetresource 120, or a combination thereof. If authorized, the DS 102presents at least the portion of the contact information associated withthe DS originator 118 to the target resource 120, at step 410; otherwisethe DS 102 does not present the DS originator 118 with the requestedcontact information associated with the target resource 120 (e.g. atleast one of the policies associated with the DS originator 118 or thetarget resource 120 may indicate that “Officer Smith” is not allowed tocontact “Chief of Police”). Examples of contact information associatedwith the DS originator 118 can be the same or similar to those describedabove with respect to the target resource 120. Notwithstanding thoseexamples, any other suitable contact information associated with the DSoriginator 118 can be updated in the DS 102 and presented to the targetresource 120 and the invention is not limited in this regard.

Moreover, the DS 102 can present a proxy resource identifier associatedwith the DS originator 118 to the target resource 120 based on at leastone of the policies associated with the DS originator 118 and/or targetresource 120 in lieu of the actual resource identifier in a similarfashion as described above. Likewise, the DS 102 can present a proxycontact address associated with the DS originator 118 to the targetresource 120 based on at least one of the policies associated with theDS originator 118 and/or target resource 120 in lieu of the actualcontact address.

Although the preceding examples and figures have been focused on publicsafety agencies, it should be obvious to one skilled in the art thatthis invention is applicable to more than the public safety marketplace.Specifically, the identity protection methods outlined by this inventioncan be used by other telecommunication systems, such as public andprivate wired and wireless systems (4G, LTE, WiMAX, CDMA, HRPD, UMTS,P25, LMR, etc.), and enterprises. In one example, a family could be anagency that can advertise family members' contact information (withpolicy) in a public cellular directory service. In another example, alarge corporation could be an agency that can advertise their employeecontact information using their enterprise Intranet.

The flowcharts and block diagram in the figures illustrate thearchitecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementationsof systems, methods and computer program products according to variousembodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block in theflowcharts or block diagram may represent a module, segment, or portionof code, which comprises one or more executable instructions forimplementing the specified logical function(s). It should also be notedthat, in some alternative implementations, the functions noted in theblock may occur out of the order noted in the figures. For example, twoblocks shown in succession may, in fact, be executed substantiallyconcurrently, or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the reverseorder, depending upon the functionality involved.

The present invention can be realized in hardware, software, or acombination of hardware and software. The present invention can berealized in a centralized fashion in one processing system or in adistributed fashion where different elements are spread across severalinterconnected processing systems. Any kind of processing system orother apparatus adapted for carrying out the methods described herein issuited. A typical combination of hardware and software can be aprocessing system with computer-usable program code that, when beingloaded and executed, controls the processing system such that it carriesout the methods described herein. The present invention also can beembedded in a computer-usable medium, such as a computer program productor other data programs storage device, readable by a machine, tangiblyembodying a program of instructions executable by the machine to performmethods and processes described herein. The present invention also canbe embedded in an application product which comprises all the featuresenabling the implementation of the methods described herein and, whichwhen loaded in a processing system, is able to carry out these methods.Thus, in accordance with one arrangement of the present invention, astorage medium having stored thereon a set of instructions which, whenloaded into a hardware device, causes the hardware device to perform thefollowing functions: receive a request from a DS originator 118 toobtain at least a portion of contact information associated with atarget resource 120; identify a first policy that is associated with theDS originator 118; identify a second policy that is associated with thetarget resource 120; based on at least one of the policies, determinewhether at least the portion of the contact information associated withthe target resource is authorized to be presented to the DS originator118; and when at least the portion of the contact information associatedwith the target resource 120 is authorized to be presented to the DSoriginator 118, present at least the portion of the contact informationassociated with the target resource 120 to the DS originator 118. Inaccordance with another arrangement of the present invention, a storagemedium having stored thereon a set of instructions which, when loadedinto a hardware device, causes the hardware device to perform thefollowing functions: receive a request from a DS originator 118 toestablish communication with a target resource 120; identify a firstpolicy that is associated with the DS originator 118; identify a secondpolicy associated with the target resource 120; based on at least one ofthe policies, determine whether at least a portion of contactinformation associated with the DS originator 118 is authorized topresented to the target resource 120; and when at least a portion of thecontact information associated with the DS originator 118 is authorizedto be presented to the target resource 120, present at least the portionof the contact information associated with the DS originator 118 to thetarget resource 120.

As used herein, the term “real-time” means a level of processingresponsiveness that a resource or system senses as sufficientlyimmediate for a particular process or determination to be made, or thatenables the processor to keep up with some external process.

The terms “computer program,” “software,” “application,” variants and/orcombinations thereof, in the present context, mean any expression, inany language, code or notation, of a set of instructions intended tocause a system having an information processing capability to perform aparticular function either directly or after either or both of thefollowing: a) conversion to another language, code or notation; b)reproduction in a different material form. For example, an applicationcan include, but is not limited to, a script, a subroutine, a function,a procedure, an object method, an object implementation, an executableapplication, an applet, a servlet, a MIDlet, a source code, an objectcode, a shared library/dynamic load library and/or other sequence ofinstructions designed for execution on a processing system.

The terms “a” and “an,” as used herein, are defined as one or more thanone. The term “plurality,” as used herein, is defined as two or morethan two. The term “another,” as used herein, is defined as at least asecond or more. The terms “including” and/or “having,” as used herein,are defined as comprising (i.e. open language).

Moreover, as used herein, ordinal terms (e.g. first, second, third,fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth, and so on)distinguish one message, signal, item, object, device, system,apparatus, step, process, or the like from another message, signal,item, object, device, system, apparatus, step, process, or the like.Thus, an ordinal term used herein need not indicate a specific positionin an ordinal series. For example, a process identified as a “secondprocess” may occur before a process identified as a “first process.”Further, one or more processes may occur between a first process and asecond process.

This invention can be embodied in other forms without departing from thespirit or essential attributes thereof. Accordingly, reference should bemade to the following claims, rather than to the foregoingspecification, as indicating the scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for providing contact information via adirectory service (DS), the method comprising computer implementedoperations of: receiving a request from a DS originator to obtain atleast a portion of contact information associated with a target resourceprior to establishing a communication session with the target resource;in response to receiving the request, identifying a first policy that isa DS access and/or viewing policy of the DS originator and identifying asecond policy that is a DS access and/or viewing policy of the targetresource; based on both the first policy and the second policy,determining whether at least the portion of the contact informationassociated with the target resource is authorized to be presented to theDS originator; when at least the portion of the contact informationassociated with the target resource is authorized to be presented to theDS originator, determining and modifying a portion of the contactinformation associated with the target resource for presentation to theDS originator in accordance with at least one of the policies;presenting the modified portion of the contact information associatedwith the target resource to the DS originator; and in response topresenting the modified portion of the contact information to the DSoriginator, receiving, from the DS originator, an attempt to proceedwith the establishment of the communication session with the targetresource.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein at least the portion of thecontact information associated with the target resource comprises atleast one of the following: a resource identifier for the targetresource, a group membership of the target resource, a home identifierof the target resource, a contact address of the target resource, a typeof device associated with the contact address, and a type of applicationassociated with the contact address.
 3. The method of claim 1, whereinat least the portion of contact information is a resource identifier forthe target resource, and wherein presenting the modified portion of thecontact information associated with the target resource to the DSoriginator comprises presenting a proxy resource identifier associatedwith the target resource to the DS originator based on both the firstpolicy and the second policy in lieu of the resource identifier.
 4. Themethod of claim 3, further comprising: associating the proxy resourceidentifier with the target resource in the DS; and assigning, by the DS,the proxy resource identifier to the DS originator, wherein the proxyresource identifier can only be used by the DS originator that isassigned to use the proxy resource identifier by the DS.
 5. The methodof claim 4, further comprising at least one of: associating the proxyresource identifier with exactly one target resource in the DS andassigning by the DS for use by one DS originator; associating the proxyresource identifier with exactly one target resource in the DS andassigning by the DS for use by a plurality of DS originators;associating the proxy resource identifier with a plurality of targetresources in the DS and assigning by the DS for use by one DSoriginator; and associating the proxy resource identifier with aplurality of target resources in the DS and assigning by the DS for useby a plurality of DS originators.
 6. The method of claim 4, furthercomprising associating a timer with the proxy resource identifier suchthat the DS can re-associate the proxy resource identifier to adifferent target resource or re-assign the proxy resource identifier toa different DS originator upon expiration of the timer.
 7. The method ofclaim 1, wherein at least the portion of contact information is thecontact address for the target resource, and wherein presenting themodified portion of the contact information associated with the targetresource to the DS originator comprises presenting a proxy contactaddress associated with the target resource to the DS originator basedon both the first policy and the second policy in lieu of a contactaddress.
 8. The method of claim 7, further comprising: associating theproxy contact address with the target resource in the DS; and assigning,by the DS, the proxy contact address to the DS originator.
 9. The methodof claim wherein the proxy contact address can only be used by the DSoriginator that is assigned to use the proxy contact address by the DS.10. The method of claim 8, further comprising at least one of:associating the proxy resource identifier with exactly one targetresource in the DS and assigning by the DS for use by one DS originator;associating the proxy resource identifier with exactly one targetresource in the DS and assigning by the DS for use by a plurality of DSoriginators; associating the proxy resource identifier with a pluralityof target resources in the DS and assigning by the DS for use by one DSoriginator; and associating the proxy resource identifier with aplurality of target resources in the DS and assigning by the DS for useby a plurality of DS originators.
 11. The method of claim 8, furthercomprising associating a timer with the proxy contact address such thatthe DS can re-associate the proxy contact address to a different targetresource or re-assign the proxy contact address to a different DSoriginator upon expiration of the timer.
 12. The method of claim 1,wherein the first policy includes at least one identifier, with eachidentifier indicating a particular target resource for which at least aportion of the contact information is authorized to be presented to theDS originator, and wherein the second policy includes at least oneidentifier, with each identifier indicating a particular DS originatorthat is authorized to be presented at least a portion of contactinformation associated with the target resource.
 13. The method of claim1, wherein the communication session comprises a half-duplexpush-to-talk call.
 14. The method of claim 1, wherein the communicationsession comprises a video communication session.
 15. The method of claim1, wherein at least the portion of the contact information associatedwith the target resource is a contact address of the target resource andthe request did not specify the contact address of the target resource.16. A non-transitory computer storage medium having stored thereon a setof instructions which, when loaded into a hardware device, causes thehardware device to perform the following functions: receive a requestfrom a DS originator to obtain at least a portion of contact informationassociated with a target resource prior to establishing a communicationsession with the target resource; in response to receiving the request,identify a first policy that is a DS access and/or viewing policy of theDS originator and identify a second policy that is a DS access and/orviewing policy of the target resource; based on both the first policyand the second policy, determine whether at least the portion of thecontact information associated with the target resource is authorized tobe presented to the DS originator; and when at least the portion of thecontact information associated with the target resource is authorized tobe presented to the DS originator, determine and modify a portion of thecontact information associated with the target resource in accordancewith at least one of the policies; present the modified portion of thecontact information associated with the target resource to the DSoriginator; and in response to presenting the modified portion of thecontact information to the DS originator, receive, from the DSoriginator, an attempt to proceed with the establishment of thecommunication session with the target resource.
 17. The non-transitorycomputer storage medium of claim 16, wherein the communication sessioncomprises a half-duplex push-to-talk call.
 18. The non-transitorycomputer storage medium of claim 16, wherein the communication sessioncomprises a video communication session.
 19. The non-transitory computerstorage medium of claim 16, wherein at least the portion of the contactinformation associated with the target resource comprises at least oneof the following: a resource identifier for the target resource, a groupmembership of the target resource, a home identifier of the targetresource, a contact address of the target resource, a type of deviceassociated with the contact address, and a type of applicationassociated with the contact address.
 20. The non-transitory computerstorage medium of claim 16, wherein at least the portion of the contactinformation associated with the target resource is a contact address ofthe target resource and the request did not specify the contact addressof the target resource.